Passport "Problems"
Hen and Jim did not know I would be on their flight from Joburg to Cape Town. I got to the gate a bit earlier than they did, but I didn't let them see me.
I organized with agents at the desk of an unused gate (D3) to call Hen and Jim to D3 and give them a bit of hassle. I also gave the agents my camera so that they could take a photo of their reaction.
The gate agents made two requests for Jim and Hen to come to gate D3: "Passengers J and H Mayerss [that's the way they pronounced it] are kindly requested to proceed to gate D3 immediately." But, they didn't hear the announcement. So, the agents at D3 sent an electronic message to our departure gate (D6) saying that Jim and Hen must report to gate D3 for an urgent matter.
Just as they were handing their boarding passes to the agent at gate D6, they received the instruction to proceed to gate D3. When Hen asked why, the agent who was collecting tickets at D6 smiled and said "you'll see why at gate D3." The agents at D3 informed Jim and Hen that there was a problem with their passports and that they must contact the US Embassy immediately. Meanwhile, I sat reading a newspaper with my back to the desk, and I heard Hen protest: "We haven't had any problems with our passports the WHOLE trip! I don't know WHY there would be a problem now." At that point I jumped up and said "Is there something I could help with?" Their emotions went from concerned to surprised to freaked to relived when they realized it was all in good fun.
